What is the difference between the Healthzone and a polyclinic?
We need to distinguish between the concept of polyclinics and GP led health centres. Healthzone will not be a polyclinic in the way the term is used in this country. Healthzone is a development in which two existing primary care practices come together on the same site with the addition of some PCT-led services. It will be run by the existing GPs, not by a private provider or anything like that. It will, however, have some of the benefits of a polyclinic – for example, it will bring a range of services together in one accessible place. Healthcare professionals will be better able to work together and there will be economies of scale. In Buckinghamshire we are calling this concept a “Primary Care Hub”. The GP led health centres are a separate initiative aimed at extending access to primary care.
